"absolute showplace" at 113 Greene Street in Soho goes for $918/ft (absolutely) : Manhattan Loft Guy

adding value did not increase price (much)
The Manhattan loft on the 4th floor of 113 Greene Street has sold twice in the last four years, in nice before-and-after fashion. Yes, "before" The Market changed (Lehman, AIG and all that other 'fundamental' stuff), but also "before" it got dressed up from a "classic loft" to an "absolute showplace". So a rather modest increase in price from 2006 to 2009 was less an increase in value (the upgrade probably added a lot more value) than it was a reflection of overall market decline.

This "2,000 sq ft" Cinderella of a loft had great bones when it was marketed in 2006 -- and great ambitions even in those heady days. They started in March 2006 at $2.125mm, then dropped (twice) to $1.725mm, before closing in September 2006 at $1.7mm. The marketing then was all about the structure: "cast-iron beauty", 13 "huge" windows, 11 foot tin ceilings, "sun-flooded". In starting at $2.125mm, those sellers mis-judged The Market, but it did not take long (and only 2 price drops) to adjust and find that deal at $1.7mm 6 months after starting out. (To get ahead of the story a bit, the 2009 found success more quickly.)

funky layout
Those September 2006 buyers apparently put a lot of work (and talent) into that "absolute showplace" condition, but they did not add a second bath (huh?). The layout is Long-and-Narrow, but hardly classically so, with a bulge at the back that is used as an extravagantly sized master bedroom cum sitting area (larger than the living room!). I don't see a floor plan with the 2006 listing, so I can't tell how many walls were moved when it was "impeccably [re]designed". Some would find the layout awkward (that single bath, a second bedroom 10x10, the bathroom opening into the dining area, all that space in the master). Layout issues aside, it is likely that the September-2006-buyers-turned-April-2009-sellers put more than $130k to turn it into an "absolute showplace".

a lack of greed is good
They came to market at $1.995mm on December 21, 2008 and found a contract by March 5, so they were not overly aggressive. The closing price (April 24) of $1.835mm is only 8% off the ask, and the ask worked in less than 3 months. Props to them (and to Josh Rubin of PruDE) for resisting the temptation to insist on 'getting their money back' from the 2006 purchase plus renovation. Theirreward: they got out.

Manhattan Loft Guy

Jun. 16, 2009 - "absolute showplace" at 113 Greene Street in Soho goes for $918/ft (absolutely)

Nov. 11, 2009 - RE: "absolute showplace" at 113 Greene Street in Soho goes for $918/ft (absolutely)

Nov. 16, 2009 - RE: "absolute showplace" at 113 Greene Street in Soho goes for $918/ft (absolutely)

Nov. 16, 2009 - RE: "absolute showplace" at 113 Greene Street in Soho goes for $918/ft (absolutely)

Nov. 16, 2009 - RE: "absolute showplace" at 113 Greene Street in Soho goes for $918/ft (absolutely)

Nov. 16, 2009 - RE: "absolute showplace" at 113 Greene Street in Soho goes for $918/ft (absolutely)

Nov. 16, 2009 - RE: "absolute showplace" at 113 Greene Street in Soho goes for $918/ft (absolutely)

Nov. 16, 2009 - RE: "absolute showplace" at 113 Greene Street in Soho goes for $918/ft (absolutely)

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